what about divine repentance?

The irrevocability of Saul’s rejection is the main subject of Moberly’s study [“Does God Change?,” pages 107–43 in Old Testament Theology: Reading the Hebrew Bible as Christian Scripture (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2013)], which puts forward two main ideas regarding 1 Sam 15:29 and its sibling text, Num 23:19. First, Moberly notes how these two statements define God’s non-repentance vis-à-vis human repentance. In a fashion akin to apophatic theology they demonstrate what YHWH is not: he does not lie or speak falsely, and in changing his mind he is not like a human being. This observation—supported by the occurrence of differing terms for divine (נחם) and human repentance (שׁוב)—sets an important parameter for future investigation as it explains that God repents on a different level from that of human beings: “It is not mutuality and responsiveness in relationship, but insincerity and faithlessness that are specified for denial.” Second, both texts concern election: Num 23:19 occurs in the midst of Balaam’s forced attempt to curse Israel (Num 22–24), while 1 Sam 15 is concerned with the divine choice of David, hinted in v. 28.—The Unfavored, page 176